For You I Will
by sanosukezlilangel
Summary: Zechs and Noin enjoy a comfortable evening... until a call from the Preventors alerts them that Marimea has gone missing! In order to save the girl, Zechs must risk his life. Will he go, knowing he may not come back; or not take the chance at all? :: i kn


For You I Will Author: sanosukezlilangel 

Disclaimer: I have not created any characters mentioned in this fic, nor do I own them. :cries cuz authoress would much rather own Zechs than Bandai; and get rid of Noin:

Taking a deep breath, Noin Merquise attempted to keep a straight face as she entered the living room, making sure her hands were safely hidden behind her back.

As usual, Zechs Merquise's face was hidden behind a book, classical music playing softly from the record player. The only thing visible behind the book was the waist-length blonde hair, which was fanned about the armchair he was sitting in and his white gloved hands; one holding up the book, the other used to turn the pages.

Not able to contain her smile, Noin walked over to her husband and stood in front of him. Zechs made no move to acknowledge her presence.

"Okay, Zechs. I know you see me standing here." She said finally, pulling the book away from his face.

Zechs' blue eyes twinkled as he laughed softly. Closing the book he was reading, he pulled his wife into his lap.

"I'm sorry, I couldn't help it." He said, kissing her. "What is it?"

Her smile broadening, Noin pulled a gift wrapped in navy blue wrapping paper and gold ribbon from behind her back and handed it to him.

"This is for you."

Glancing at her, he pulled the ribbon off the small package.

"I wonder what it could be?" Zechs asked, taking his time to open the present.

Noin couldn't contain her excitement.

"Hurry up and open it already!" She exclaimed.

"Okay, okay, I see you don't want to keep the wrapping paper. And it's such beautiful paper too…"

"Zechs…"

"Alright, alright."

There was a flutter of blue paper and ribbon as Zechs looked at the medium sized box in his hands. Teasing his wife, he pretended that he couldn't open it.

"My gloves are making it impossible to open this box." He said.

Noin looked like she was ready to pitch a fit.

"Zechs, quit playing already. I want to see your expression before I become an old woman."

Laughing softly, Zechs opened the box. Inside, surrounded by white tissue paper, was a pair of white gloves, a pin in the shape of a dove, a small picture frame with a picture of him and Noin before the war of AC196, and a small book. Surprised, he looked up at his wife.

"You got all this… for me?"

Noin nodded, eyes glistening with tears.

"But… why?"

"Because, I love you, Zechs."

"Oh Noin…" Zechs closed the box and held her face in his hands. "I don't need all this just to know that you love me. Seeing your beautiful face everyday is enough for me."

"I know… it's just that, ever since last year…"

Zechs placed a finger on Noin's lips, silencing her.

"What happened last year happened. We did the best we could, and in the end, we won. Now the Earth and the colonies can live in peace."

"Zechs…"

He shushed her with a kiss, which she returned with a passion. She ran her fingers through his hair as he delicately kissed along her jawline and neck.

"Noin…"

She pulled back, breathless, and gazed down at her husband. "Yes?"

Zechs tried to catch his breath before answering.

"I love you so much. Words can't explain how I feel for you…"

Noin toyed with his collar before kissing his neck.

"Then show me…"

Desire for this woman overwhelming him, his lips found hers and locked in another passionate kiss.

(A/N. Despite what Noin says, this will not, I repeat, will NOT turn into a lemon!)

Before they could go any further, the phone rang.

"I should go answer it…" Noin said, pulling back.

Zechs pulled her closer to him and kissed her.

"Whoever it is can leave a message." He murmured, taking in the sweet scent of Noin's perfume. He didn't want her to go, he was enjoying this moment.

"Still… what if it's Sally?"

"Then Sally can leave a message."

Realizing that Zechs wasn't going to answer the phone any time soon, Noin surrendered and returned Zechs' kisses.

"Zechs, Noin. It's Sally. Answer the phone."

Neither moved.

"I know you're there, guys. Stop your romantic encounters and answer the phone already. It's important."

Noin pulled back.

"I told you it was Sally." She whispered.

Zechs sighed. When it came to Sally Po and the Preventors, he knew there was no holding Noin back from her work. It somehow reminded him of when he used to pilot the Gundam Tallgeese III, before peace settled.

"Alright." He said reluctantly, letting her go, but not before a final kiss. "But you owe me."

"I'll keep it in mind." Was Noin's reply as she stood to answer the phone.

Zechs watched as she talked business with Sally. He smiled to himself. He was lucky to have a woman like Noin; she was so independent and sure of herself. He touched a gloved hand to his lips. It wasn't every day he and Noin had the chance to spend quality time together, even with the peace. And if whatever Sally called to talk about had even the tiniest bit of importance, Zechs was sure they wouldn't have another moment like that for awhile.

Noin hung up the phone, a troubled look visible on her face.

"What is it?" Asked Zechs, standing.

"Marimea… she's missing."

(A/N. I'm sure I spelled her name wrong, corrections are welcome! Doomo! .)

"You can't mean…"

Noin nodded. "Sally called to tell me that Lady Une went to let Marimea know that lunch was ready, and she wasn't in her room, so Une called her and she called me."

"What are you going to do?"

Noin headed to the foyer, taking her cloak off its hook.

"I'm going to find her."

Standing, Zechs pulled his cloak off its hook and followed her out the door.

"I'm coming with you."

At the Preventor Building, Sally turned to the window overlooking the city. How could Marimea be gone? Who would've taken her? Dakheim was out of the question; he was murdered in the war. Sally closed her eyes. Who would want to kidnap Trieze's daughter?

"I wouldn't worry too much, Sally. I'm sure we'll find her." WuFei turned from the computer and looked over at his comrade.

"It's been a year. Why wait until a year after a war to kidnap a little girl?"

"Maybe whoever kidnapped her wanted power."

Sally and WuFei turned to the door where Zechs and Noin were standing. Sally breathed a sigh of relief and walked over to her other partner.

"It's about time you guys got here. And what took you so long to answer the phone?" She asked.

"We're sorry, we got here as fast as we could. As for why we didn't answer the phone for awhile, we won't get into that." Zechs responded.

"Oh… I see…" Sally winked at Noin and headed to the computers. "So far, we haven't really found much, at least nothing that will help us out."

Noin joined Sally at the computers.

"Have any clue as to who would kidnap her?"

"None at all."

Zechs joined WuFei at his computer.

"Hey Sally, do you know if Lady Une's mansion has security cameras?" He asked.

"Yes. Why?"

Turning to a vacant computer, Zechs entered some information into the machine. Instantly, the floor plan of the Une security system appeared on the screen.

"If I can find out which camera was near Marimea's room, I'm sure we could use that footage to find out something about her captor."

Sally stared at Zechs.

"You think it will work?"

"I hope so."

WuFei turned to the computer Zechs occupied and stared intently at the screen.

"If I remember correctly, her room should be there. So the camera, if strategically placed, would be right about there." WuFei stated, pointing to the far right corner of the house. "It may take awhile, but I may be able to hack into the security files and obtain the necessary footage. But I will need an approximate time Une went to check on Marimea to get the right footage."

Noin headed to the phone.

"I'll call her and see if I can find that out for you."

Sally seated herself at the computer next to Zechs, who was already working on a way to hack through the security.

"I'll help you and Zechs find this footage. We can't allow Marimea to get hurt again." She told WuFei.

"I got a time for you. Around 11:30 am." Noin said, hanging up the phone.

"Excellent." WuFei said without taking his eyes off the computer.

"We're in." Zechs told WuFei.

Sally finished typing in some more information, then turned from the computer.

"I've disabled all other security programs. The rest is up to you." She said, resting a hand on WuFei's shoulder.

He looked up at her and gave her the barest of smiles.

"I'll do my best." He returned his gaze to the computer and started the search.

"I have the footage." Announced WuFei a few hours later.

On the couch, Zechs gently nudged Noin, who was asleep on his lap.

"Time to wake up." He whispered. "He's got the footage."

Noin groaned in protest, but got up and walked over to the computer, followed by Zechs. Sally stood from her desk and walked over to the computer, coffee cup in hand.

"Play it." She said.

WuFei hit the play button. The group watched the screen. Sure enough, a few minutes later, someone entered Marimea's room. Right after the entrance, the captor was seen dragging Marimea from her room, her mouth covered. Then the captor made the biggest mistake ever: he looked up at the camera.

"Stop it right there." Zechs commanded.

The footage froze and Zechs stared at the screen. That face looked notably familiar…

"There's something familiar about that man…" WuFei put in.

"I know. I have a feeling of who he may be, but it would be impossible considering past events." Zechs responded.

Suddenly, the transmission screen popped up over the camera footage. The screen showed nothing but static.

"Who is that?" Noin asked, taking Zechs' hand in hers.

"There is no need to be afraid, Noin. It's just me."

The screen cleared and Zechs and WuFei gasped in utter shock.

"Trieze…"

"Ah, hello there, WuFei. It's been awhile since we last met."

WuFei's eyes widened. "You're supposed to be dead."

"You're right about that. But, I'm like Zechs. I've found that my soul can't rest in peace until my daughter was with me."

Sally was able to find her voice and gripped the computer screen.

"Are you saying that you… kidnapped Marimea?"

"That would be correct. Here she is if you don't believe me."

Trieze pulled his daughter in front of the transmitter. Noin gasped.

"Marimea…!"

Muffled noises came from behind the cloth that covered the little girl's mouth.

Noin shoved Sally out of the way and addressed Trieze.

"Where is she!"

"I was about to get to that." Trieze put Marimea down and clasped his hands in front of his face. "If you so desire to come after Marimea, you will find me at the Kushrenada mansion. I must warn you though, if you come into the mansion, I doubt you will make it out. Alive, anyway. So Zechs, I suggest you don't come, since you and Noin are in love. Wouldn't want your beloved to worry about you dying, now would you?"

"You're sick, you know that?" Zechs asked through gritted teeth.

Trieze laughed.

"I've gotten that many times before. To answer your question, I'm not sick. I'm just trying to keep you and Noin together. But if you want to break her heart, that's your decision."

With that, the transmission ended. After a few minutes of silence, WuFei stood and grabbed his jacket.

"I don't know about you guys, but I'm not gonna sit here and let that jerk take Marimea like that. Even if she is his daughter."

Zechs didn't respond. He realized the danger he would put himself in by going to rescue Marimea, but he wasn't going to let WuFei go alone.

"Zechs?"

He looked at Noin. Her eyes were filled with tears. He couldn't deny the fact that he loved this woman, and he would do anything for her. But… he couldn't let Trieze take another innocent soul.

"You're not going, are you?" She asked, looking up at him.

"There are things I must settle with Trieze…"

"NO!" Noin gripped Zechs' hand. "I won't let you go and get yourself killed."

He pulled her close to him in a tight embrace.

"I must go… I can't let him kill Marimea like this…"

"So you're going to go and sacrifice yourself? Zechs please, don't go…" Noin allowed the tears to flow freely down her cheeks. " I don't want to lose you… again…"

Zechs took Noin's face into his hands and wiped her tears away.

"I love you so much Noin, I'd do anything for you. Even if… even if that means I sacrificing my life for someone else's."

"No Zechs… I won't let you… What if you don't make it out of there?"

"I will make it out. Alive. For you, I will come out of that mansion alive."

Noin didn't respond. She didn't want to lose Zechs, yet she didn't want Marimea to die. She closed her eyes in defeat.

"Alright. Just promise me, you'll come out of there alive."

Zechs kissed her.

"I promise you, Noin. I will come back to you. For you, I will."

"I love you, Zechs."

He smiled at his wife.

"I love you too."

Hugging Noin one last time, he looked at Sally.

"Take care of her for me."

"I will. I'll also call Lady Une and explain to her what's going on."

"That may not be a good idea. Remember, Lady Une was, and probably still is, in love with Trieze. If you tell her he's the one who took Marimea, she may go after him and end up getting herself killed. It's best to wait until after all this is over with and then tell her." Zechs told her.

"You're right." Sally sighed. "Don't worry about Noin; I'll keep a close eye on her for you."

"Thank you." Zechs turned and headed for the door. "Let's go, WuFei."

Zechs and WuFei arrived at the Kushrenada mansion around midnight. Turning off the ignition, Zechs got out of the car and stared at the somewhat abandoned mansion.

"You ready?" He asked WuFei, although he already knew the answer.

WuFei nodded and the two continued up the front walk and into the house. It seemed as though everywhere seemed deserted. Discreetly, they made their way down the long hallway. Zechs heard a click and turned, startled. WuFei looked up at him. In his hands were two guns.

"I was loading these. Just in case." He tossed a gun to Zechs.

"Thanks."

They continued their trek down the hall. On the far left, a door opened, causing WuFei and Zechs to hide behind another door.

"Come, Marimea. It's time for bed." A stern voice said.

Zechs' muscles tensed as Marimea and someone else walked past the door they were hiding behind. A few doors down, Marimea and her "care taker" entered a room, supposedly the room she was staying in. The door closed, and Zechs checked the hall to make sure the coast was clear, then motioned to WuFei for them to continue.

Finally, they came to the end of the hall, which started into another hall that went in two different directions.

"This is where we part." WuFei said. "I'll see you on the flip side." He turned right and ran off into the darkness.

"The question is, which flip side were you talking about." Muttered Zechs as he went left.

It was silent as Zechs walked down the carpeted hall. After taking a few steps, he realized that it was getting lighter, making the portraits on the walls all the more noticeable. Ignoring them, he continued down the hall until he came to an unoccupied room. Or so he thought. The room Zechs entered turned out to be an office, with the chair facing the window.

"How nice of you to join me, Zechs." The chair turned revealing the room's occupant.

"Trieze…" Zechs glared at his ex- friend.

"Please, have a seat. There are things we must discuss."

Now alone, WuFei continued down the hallway, gun cocked and ready. A muffled sound attracted his attention to the last door on the right. As he got closer, he was able to identify the muffled sounds as cries. He rested his ear against the door, hoping to hear what was going on.

"I want to go home." It was Marimea.

Somehow, there was another door leading to the room she was staying in. Looking around to make sure he was the only one in the hallway, WuFei turned the door handle and opened the door. Instantly, the crying stopped.

"Marimea?" He called softly into the darkness.

Before he could move, the barrel of a gun was pressed against the back of his head.

"Don't move. Or else I'll blow your brains out. Drop your gun."

Lifting his arms, WuFei dropped his gun and kicked it away from him.

"Let's go. I'm sure Trieze will be glad to know that you tried to play the hero."

His captor jerked him toward the doorway and out into the hall. As they walked down the hallway Zechs had taken, WuFei silently cursed himself. He should've known that that was too easy. Trieze was smarter than that.

"Where is Marimea?" Zechs asked, a sharp edge to his voice.

"Wouldn't you like to know." Trieze replied, enjoying putting Zechs through all this torture. He shrugged. "I guess I could tell you where she is, though I doubt you'll reach her in time." He stood and walked to the front of the desk. "You see…"

Trieze's sentence was interrupted when two bodyguards burst into the room, WuFei between them. Not all that gently, they shoved him forward.

"We found this idiot snooping around the mansion." One of the bodyguards said.

Trieze looked up and smiled.

"Well if it isn't WuFei Chang." He said, walking up to him.

"Trieze Kushrenada."

"My old chess buddy. How's life been for you?"

WuFei glared at him.

"Not going to answer me, eh? Oh well, that's fine by me." Trieze turned back to Zechs. "What was I saying… oh yes. The reason why you probably won't make it out of here alive is because I've strategically planted bombs all over this mansion, and they're set to detonate in," He checked his watch. " Ten minutes or so."

(A/N. Let me explain that. Trieze is saying that in ten minutes, all the bombs will have been detonated. They're not gonna detonate ten minutes after each other. Just so ya know! .)

Zechs stared at Trieze.

"You can't be serious."

"I am serious, Zechs Merquise. In ten minutes, you, WuFei, Marimea, and myself shall rest in peace. Forever." Trieze paused for a second, letting that statement sink in before continuing. " Of course, I'm not going to keep you two cooped up in this room while the mansion falls to pieces. I'm going to let one of you attempt to find Marimea while the other…well, the other stays with me for one last fight. This one, to the death."

WuFei cast a glance over at Zechs. He wasn't sure of where Marimea could possibly be, but he also wanted to redeem himself by fighting Trieze.

"You go find Marimea, WuFei." Zechs said, not taking his eyes off Trieze.

"What!"

A loud explosion shook the mansion. Seconds later, smoke was billowing everywhere. Trieze smiled.

"Bomb number one."

"I want you to go find Marimea, WuFei! I'll stay and fight Trieze!" Zechs shouted over the explosion.

WuFei hesitated.

"Go! Now!" Zechs shoved him out of the door just as another bomb detonated.

Without turning back, WuFei took off in search of Marimea.

Once WuFei had gone, Zechs turned to Trieze.

"So, you decided to stay and fight. It's a shame, considering Noin will never see you again." Trieze taunted.

"Shut up and let's get this over with." Zechs growled.

Trieze smiled.

"Of course."

He walked over to the wall and pulled two swords from their sheaths. Tossing one to Zechs, he got into the ready position. When he saw that Zechs was ready, he attacked.

Zechs quickly dodged Trieze's first attack and retaliated, putting Trieze on the defense. Another bomb shook the building, but Zechs pressed on. There was no way he was going to lose…

WuFei stopped and ducked from falling debris after the third bomb went off. He assumed that was the third bomb in the last two or three minutes. So in total, there probably be five of them, four in the four corners of the house, the fifth one… WuFei continued running. The fifth one would most likely be located in the center of the house, where he was standing.

A distant pounding attracted his attention. Dodging falling debris and rafters, he ran to the sound. Shielding his eyes against the smoke, he looked around to see where the pounding could possibly be coming from. His eyes rested on a door to his left. Wrapping the jacket sleeve around his hand, he opened the door and was greeted with billows of smoke and fire.

The pounding continued. This time, words could be heard also, although WuFei couldn't quite make them out. Turning from the burning room, he went to the door opposite the one he just opened. Hoping this was the right one, he opened the door. Sure enough, he could make out the bright red hair of Marimea Kushrenada.

"Marimea!" WuFei threw his arms around the girl, who was sobbing. "It's okay… Everything will be okay…"

He turned to go back out into the hallway when the hallway ceiling caved in, blocking the exit. Smoke billowed into the room, momentarily blinding WuFei. Holding the girl closer to him, he looked around the room for another exit and his eyes rested on a rather large window. Taking off his jacket, he wrapped it around Marimea, and, picking her up, ran for the window. The fourth bomb went off, and WuFei had to dodge pieces of flaming rafters, a chandelier, and huge blocks of cement. The window came closer and closer. Clutching Marimea closer to him and making sure the jacket was wrapped tightly about her, WuFei jumped through the window, allowing clouds of smoke and shattered glass out into the open.

Ignoring the cuts he received from the window, he ran until he arrived to the car, which, despite all the explosions, was still in one piece. Lucky for him, Zechs had left the keys in the ignition.

WuFei stopped and turned to the mansion. Zechs… he was most likely still in there, and there was only one bomb left… Opening the car door, he put Marimea into the back seat and made sure she was buckled in before seating himself in the driver's side of the car. Leaning over, he opened the glove compartment and looked for the cell phone Sally had put there for emergencies. When he found it, he closed the glove compartment, started the car, and drove a safe distance away from the burning building. Looking at the Kushrenada mansion through the rearview mirror, WuFei called Sally at the Preventor Headquarters.

Zechs was wrenching his sword from the midsection of Trieze Kushrenada when the fourth bomb went off. Deciding to leave it, he left the room and entered the hallway, which was already on fire. Covering his mouth and nose with his jacket sleeve, he ran through the hallway, hoping to find a way out before another bomb went off. From the looks of the damage already caused, all it would take for the mansion to crumble was one more bomb.

A rafter fell from the ceiling and onto Zechs' shoulder, leaving a deep gash. He quickened his pace through the hallway, making sure to dodge other falling debris. He hoped WuFei found Marimea, and made it out all right.

At the end of the hallway, Zechs noticed a window and started to run toward it. In his haste to reach it, he tripped over a burning piece of debris and his pants leg caught fire. Shouting curses over the pain, he attempted to beat it out. He wasn't sure how much time was left before the other bomb went off, let alone where it was.

Not wanting to waste any more time, Zechs limped his way down the rest of the hallway, using what he could of the wall as a guide. Just a little bit closer…

The fifth and final bomb went off, and the pressure from the explosion literally propelled Zechs through the window and into the front lawn, cement, glass, and debris embedding themselves in his back, face, arms, and chest. As quickly as he could, he got up and gingerly limped away from the slowly collapsing building.

When he was far enough away from the house, Zechs collapsed against a tree and examined his injuries. He was pretty sure his right shoulder was seriously bruised, if not broken, his leg seriously burned, cuts on his back, plus minor cuts and burns. Sighing, he rested his head against the tree.

He had made it. Despite what Trieze said about not making out alive, he had made it. Struggling, he made it to his feet and began the sluggish walk back to the Preventor Headquarters.

Sally watched the Kushrenada mansion slowly burn to the ground, her heart filling with dread. Had they made it out alive? She turned away from the window and glanced over at the couch, where Noin lay sleeping. Had Zechs made it out alive?

The phone rang, interrupting her thoughts. Rushing to her desk, she answered it.

"Hello, Sally speaking."

"I've got her." It was WuFei!

"WuFei… you made it…" Sally let out a sigh of relief. "You found Marimea?"

"Yes. She's asleep right now and we're on our way back to Headquarters."

Sally looked over at Noin and felt her heart go heavy again.

"What about Zechs? Did he make it?" This was what she was regretting.

WuFei didn't respond for awhile.

"I don't know. He and Trieze were getting ready to fight their last fight when he told me to go find Marimea. I came straight to the car and drove off right when the fifth bomb went off. I don't think he made it." Came the reply.

Sally didn't respond. She couldn't. A knot was forming in her throat.

"Um… WuFei? I'll see you when you get here. I'm glad you made it." She managed to choke out.

"Yeah, me too." And the phone went dead.

Tears forming behind her eyes, Sally hung up the phone. How was she going to tell Noin that her one true love wasn't coming back?

"Sally, who was that on the phone?"

She turned. Sitting up on the couch was Noin, now awake.

"It was… WuFei. He just called to let me know that he had Marimea and he was on his way back here."

Noin looked out the window, where the orange glow of the fire was highly visible. Immediately, she thought of Zechs. Did he make it? She was afraid to ask.

"Sally…?"

"Yes."

"Did…did Zechs… did he…"

Sally turned to the window, unable to stop the tears. There was no way she could tell Noin the truth…

"Sally…" Noin's voice wavered slightly. "Please… I must know… Did he… survive?"

Sally turned from the window and faced Noin, tears streaming down her face. Noin felt her throat close up and her vision become clouded with tears.

"No…" She whispered.

"Noin…" Sally went over to her partner and hugged her. "I'm so, so sorry…"

A sob escaped Noin's throat as she cried into her friend's shoulder.

"No… He can't be… He can't be dead!"

"Shh… hush now…" Sally tried comforting her, but knew her efforts would not help her grieving friend.

The door to the Headquarters opened and WuFei entered the room with Marimea still wrapped in the jacket. Both were covered with dust, and WuFei had some cuts on his arms, hands, and face. Blood flowed from the wounds in little rivers.

Sally looked up at him, tears staining her face.

"WuFei…"

He went into the spare bedroom and placed Marimea under the covers of the bed. Closing the door partway, he went into the main part of Headquarters, where Sally was sitting with Noin. WuFei sat on the other side of Noin and placed a hand on her shoulder. She turned and looked at him, eyes rimmed with red.

"Noin…I'm sorry…"

"WuFei…"

He held her close to him as she continued to cry. WuFei himself tried not to cry.

"He was a brave man… sacrificing himself for us…"

WuFei couldn't control his emotions any longer and let the tears fall down his cheeks.

Gripping his shoulder, Zechs continued to limp to Headquarters.  
The large amount of blood he was losing was making him dizzy and short of breath. He approached the huge front doors and went inside. He was almost there… He just had to make it up this small flight of stairs.

He was halfway up the steps when he could hear the sobbing.

"He can't be gone…Zechs…" It was Noin.

Zechs felt his own eyes fill with tears. With his free hand, he gripped the railing the best he could and realized that he was rapidly losing strength. He made it to the top of the stairs and opened the door that led to Headquarters.

Sally and WuFei turned to the door. Sally was barely able to contain her joy as she spoke to Noin.

"Noin, he's not gone. Look."

Noin stopped crying and looked at the doorway.

"Zechs…?"

He smiled weakly. Blood poured from the wound in his shoulder and back. His face and hair was covered with dirt smudges, debris, cuts all over his face, arms, neck and hands, also bleeding. His leg was also bleeding badly from the burn. Using what strength he had left, he rested on the doorjamb.

"I told you… 'For you, I will make it back. Alive.'" He managed to get out before losing consciousness.

"Thank you both for finding her." Lady Une said the next day at the hospital.

Zechs smiled from his hospital bed.

"You're welcome."

WuFei nodded, his head wrapped in a bandage and stitches in his arms. Sally stood by his side, smiling at Marimea.

"We're all happy that you're safe now, Marimea." She said.

Marimea turned to WuFei.

"I wanted to thank you personally, WuFei. For rescuing me."

"You're welcome, Marimea."

Lady Une took Marimea gently by the arm.

"Well, we'd better get going. The limo isn't going to wait forever, you know."

She turned to the door, but turned back to WuFei and Sally.

"Would you two like a ride back to Headquarters?" She asked.

"No, we had something else planned." WuFei answered, taking Sally's hand.

"Oh, I see. Well, I better not hold you two up then." Lady Une said, winking at Sally. "You get better, Zechs, okay?"

"Will do."

Lady Une and Marimea left the room. Sally turned to Zechs and Noin.

"We better not hold you two up either. Get better, Zechs. I can't stand seeing you strapped to the ceiling like that." Sally said with a laugh.

Zechs and Noin laughed.

"I'll try. Although I'm getting used to hanging from the ceiling like this." Zechs replied, moving his right shoulder and leg, which were both in slings.

"Get well, Zechs." WuFei said before leaving with Sally.

Zechs sighed. "Now it's just us two." He said to Noin, patting the empty space next to him with his free hand.

Noin sat on the bed next to him and settled into his side. "I'm happy you're alive, Zechs. When Sally told me… that you didn't make it…" Her voice cracked.

Zechs kissed Noin's head softly. He was just as happy to be alive, if not more. He couldn't imagine leaving his Noin alone like that. He pulled her closer to him. They were together now, and that's the way he wanted it to stay. "Noin…"

"Yes?"

"I love you."

" I love you too."

"And I just wanted to let you know… that I would do anything for you…"

Noin turned and placed a finger on Zechs' lips. "Shh… You're here now… That's all that matters to me…"

Zechs gazed at his wife that he so adored. "Noin… I…"

"And the next time you say you'll do anything for me, rule out dying for me, okay? Yesterday was too close of a call for me."

"Of course." Zechs said and kissed her.

She returned the kiss with a passion so powerful, it made Zechs realize how much this woman really and truly loved him. _For you, I will do anything, Noin. That's how much I love you. For you, I will._


End file.
